Study Groups

Jim McLaren

Mondays 9:15 to 10:45 a.m., In Person
10 weeks, begins September 14

This course will look at the neurobiology of the brain and what we know about its function. While the focus will be on the human brain, it is best to understand its structure and function from the point of view of its evolution. Often described as the most complex biological structure to have ever evolved, intensive study over centuries has not uncovered many of its secrets - in particular what is meant by the terms “mind” and “consciousness”. We will look at what we know and what we don’t know about the human brain and what that may say about the now exploding field of artificial intelligence.

Jim McLaren is a retired science teacher and Department Head at Newton South High School. In the 80’s and 90’s he co-authored a middle school and a high school biology text that were adopted in schools nationally. His interest in science in general and biology in particular is lifelong, as is his interest in infecting others, young and adult, with that passion.

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Virginia Slep

Mondays 10 a.m. to noon, via Zoom
begins September 14

In this writing group, the creative talents of the participants will be encouraged by their peers. Members are invited to write in any genre: memoir, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, essay, humor or play. Handouts will be provided to stimulate writing. Participants are given time to share their writings with classmates if they choose. Sometimes in talking about someone else’s writing, we are able to clarify our own thoughts and abilities. This is a light-hearted, supportive, welcoming group whose members enjoy writing for the fun of it.

Virginia Slep holds a BA and an MA in English and taught high school English for 35 years before her retirement. She has been leading this writing study group at LLARC since 2008 and was awarded the 2023 LLARC Bernie Shuster Award for excellence in teaching. She writes a regular column for the North Reading Transcript. Virginia has a PhD in Clinical Hypnosis and has a private practice in Wayland. In this writing group, the creative talents of the participants will be encouraged by their peers.

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Kara Torres-Kilgannon

Mondays 10:30 a.m. to noon, In Person
Five weeks, begins September 14

This course explores selected themes in England, France, and Poland during and after the Second World War. Drawing on survivor testimony and film, it examines lived experiences of war and the profound ways in which conflict reshaped families, politics, and society.

Kara Torres-Kilgannon is a historian specializing in Holocaust and Genocide Studies; she earned a BA in History from Sheffield Hallam University, an MA (in Law) from the University of Sheffield, and an MA from Yeshiva University. She is pursuing her PhD in Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Gratz College.

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Alice Miller

Mondays 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., In Person
Five weeks, begins September 14

Different instruments, especially those with which we’re less familiar, can dramatically change the way we hear even the most familiar musical pieces and open up new ways of experiencing them.

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Alice Miller

Mondays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., In Person
Five weeks, begins November 2

Change your music, change your mood—why does it work so well? How can we make our music work for us? We’ll explore the emotional impacts of music and examine the ways in which we can help to modify our own mood and energy level by the music we hear.

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Saul Shapiro

Tuesdays, 9:15 to 10:45 a.m., In Person
10 weeks, begins September 15

The recent rise of Christian Nationalism as part of the MAGA phenomenon has raised the issue of the proper relationship of religion and politics in a democratic United States. The doctrine of a strict wall of separation between the two, originating in the writing of Thomas Jefferson, is now not only being challenged in practice – it has been periodically throughout our history – but is now more openly in theory as well. From Project 2025 to the policies of Trump’s second act the relationship of the two is front and center in the 2026 mid-terms and the 2028 Presidential elections.

This course will explore the historical record from the Pilgrims and Puritans in the early 1600s, to the First and Second Great Awakenings, to the theological aspects of the American Revolution and the Civil War, the rise of the KKK not once but twice, Billy Graham’s “crusades”, the advent of the “Moral Majority” up to the present time. We will also visit the reciting of the Lord’s Prayer in public schools, the Battle Hymn of the Republic, and the amendment to the Pledge of Allegiance adding an explicit reference to God. Most of all, this course will challenge the participants to think through and share their own experiences and feelings as Americans who have lived through the post World War II era, the 1960’s, the reinsertion of religious themes in our politics from abortion to gay rights including the right to marry, to the reaction against these and related movements.

Saul Schapiro has a BA from City College of New York with a major in Political Science and an LLM from Harvard Law School. He practiced law in his own firm from 1972 – 2008, which practice included litigation and transactional representation. He served as the primary outside litigator for the Boston Redevelopment Authority from 1985 – 2008. He also served as General Counsel to the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (investing union pension funds in affordable housing and health care facilities) from 2009 – 2013. He has taught numerous courses on American Government, the United States Supreme Court, and modern challenges of changing economic and political environment at continuing life learning programs since 2018.

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Ann Berman

Tuesdays, 9:15 to 10:45 a.m., via Zoom
Five weeks, begins October 20

Shakespeare’s 430-year-old play Hamlet is woven into western culture and continues to influence it. Taylor Swift uses a quote from the play on her latest album, two commercial film versions were released in the last six months, and new novels and plays based on it are produced regularly. What’s the relevance? Why now? There are many ways to approach Hamlet, and by sharing our individual experiences of it, our understanding will expand. As Hamlet says, “The play’s the thing!”

In this course we will work through one act a week, teasing out the meaning of the text, looking at related material and learning more about the context in which the play was written. Since it was meant to be seen and heard, not read, links to various film productions will be provided if you’d like to watch one (or more!) versions. And if you are interested, Actors’ Shakespeare Project will be performing the play in February in Watertown. I hope you’ll join us in our explorations.

Ann Berman is a retired special education teacher. She has taught for LLARC and Berkshire OLLI for more than a decade, usually offering courses based on Shakespeare’s plays. In 2018 she earned a Master’s in Shakespeare Studies from King’s College in London and had a wicked good time doing so.

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Steve Kendall

Tuesdays, 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., In Person
Five weeks, begins September 15

When the world’s greatest photographers—Ansel Adams, Annie Leibowitz, Robert Mapplethorpe and many others—shot their most stunning photos, they didn’t think about great paintings. (Or did they?) Yet the similarities between their work and great paintings can be amazing and wonderful. In this course, you will see and discuss dozens of captivating photos and the paintings that seem to have inspired them. We’ll cross styles and centuries: You’ll compare an edgy advertising photo by legendary Helmut Newton to Diego Valazquez’s masterpiece Las Meninas. You’ll see uncanny resemblances between a famous National Geographic cover photo of an Afghan girl and, yes, the Mona Lisa. And you’ll wonder: Was Man Ray thinking of an iconic Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres painting when he photographed the back of a woman? We’ll talk together—and perhaps learn whether great artistic minds really do think alike.

Steve Kendall has taught art history-related courses for LLARC for the past 19 terms, and is a former recipient of the LLARC Bernie Shuster Award for teaching excellence. He has been a tour guide at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum for 12 years, and prior to retirement was the president of an advertising and public relations agency.

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Kara Torres-Kilgannon

Tuesdays, 10:30 a.m. to noon, In Person
Three weeks, begins November 3

“I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” The verdict is in—but was justice truly served? You be the judge. Examine the evidence as it unfolds through the investigation, trial, and convictions in three harrowing criminal cases involving children in England. In this course, discover the stories of James Bulger, Peter Connelly (aka “Baby P”), and Shannon Matthews.

Kara Torres-Kilgannon is a historian specializing in Holocaust and Genocide Studies; she earned a BA in History from Sheffield Hallam University, an MA (in Law) from the University of Sheffield, and an MA from Yeshiva University. She is pursuing her PhD in Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Gratz College.

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Ronna Frick

Tuesdays, 1 to 4 p.m., via Zoom
10 weeks, begins September 15

This 10-week course will explore women directors from around the world. Covering a wide range of genres—from war films to coming-of-age stories, from sports films to social satires and a variety of topics in between—these works demonstrate the breadth, skill, and vision of female directors, raising questions about whether women directors choose to tell different stories or tell stories differently than male directors would. Is there is anything uniquely female in these directors’ visions, and if so, what does that looks like? Is there such a thing as a "female perspective.? We will examine Agnès Varda’s "Cléo from 5 to 7", Agnieszka Holland's "Europa, Europa", Penny Marshal's "A League of Their Own", Kathryn Bigelow's "Hurt Locker", Debra Granik's "Winter’s Bone", Ava Duvernay's "Selma", Greta Gerwig's "Barbie", Celine Song's "Past Lives", Justine Triet's "Anatomy of a Fall", and Chloe Zhao's "Hamnet" for their artistic voices and choices in order to consider how these filmmakers use cinema. Is it to raise challenging issues? Expand representation? Present a female viewpoint? Or just to tell a story? Do they succeed in deepening our understanding of the human condition? (These films and directors are subject to change.)

Ronna Frick has led literature and film related discussion groups at LLARC since 2010 and is a former recipient of the LLARC Bernie Shuster Award for teaching excellence. Prior to LLARC she taught high school English for over 40 years and served nine years as English department chair at Wellesley High School. She thoroughly enjoys teaching at LLARC and looks forward to another meaningful and fun experience with other lifelong learners.

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John Duff

Wednesdays, 9:15 to 10:45 a.m., In Person
Eight weeks, begins September 16

“Authoritarian” is an antonym for democratic. Our principal text will be How Democracies Die by Levitsky and Ziblatt (Crown 2018). They review its history in Europe and Latin America. Supplemental material will be supplied daily by the Courts, Media, White House, and other experts. Strong opinions welcome.

A retired tax attorney/CPA, John has led more than a dozen LLARC classes on (mostly) controversial issues over the last 20 years. He is a graduate of Notre Dame, Harvard Law and BU Law.

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Bernie Shuster

Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., In Person
10 weeks, begins September 16

Between 1850 and 1900 Boston underwent a stunning transformation. It achieved national and international recognition and prominence in science, politics, medicine, education, commerce, and transportation. This course will explore how this remarkable evolution took place.

Bernard Shuster earned a BA in History at UMASS Amherst and an LLD at Boston University School of Law. He practiced law for several years as a partner in a Boston Law firm. He founded and served as COO at a financial services firm. Bernie has led over 50 courses at LLARC and HILR.

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Dorothy Miller

Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., In Person
10 weeks, begins September 16

We will read and discuss The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. Wharton came from the New York high society that she writes about so she is familiar with the environment her heroine Lily Bart is a part of. We will find out how Lily fares in this society.

Dorothy Miller taught in the English Department at Boston College for forty years specializing in multicultural literature. This will be her fifth year teaching various works of literature at Regis.

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Steve Kendall

Wednesdays, 1 to 2:45 p.m., In Person
Five weeks, begins September 16

When the world’s greatest photographers—Ansel Adams, Annie Leibowitz, Robert Mapplethorpe and many others—shot their most stunning photos, they didn’t think about great paintings. (Or did they?) Yet the similarities between their work and great paintings can be amazing and wonderful. In this course, you will see and discuss dozens of captivating photos and the paintings that seem to have inspired them. We’ll cross styles and centuries: You’ll compare an edgy advertising photo by legendary Helmut Newton to Diego Valazquez’s masterpiece Las Meninas. You’ll see uncanny resemblances between a famous National Geographic cover photo of an Afghan girl and, yes, the Mona Lisa. And you’ll wonder: Was Man Ray thinking of an iconic Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres painting when he photographed the back of a woman? We’ll talk together—and perhaps learn whether great artistic minds really do think alike.

Steve Kendall has taught art history-related courses for LLARC for over 20 terms, and is a former recipient of the LLARC Bernie Shuster Award for teaching excellence. He has been a tour guide at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum for 12 years, and prior to retirement was the president of an advertising and public relations agency.

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Dick Sullivan

Thursdays, 9:30 to 11 a.m., In Person
10 weeks, begins September 17

From the State House in Philadelphia in 1776 to the streets of Minneapolis in 2026, we will explore the immigration waves and phases that followed the founding of our nation, from the Frontier Expansion through the post-1965 Immigration Law decisions that produced the American population of the 21st Century. We will examine the contributions to American Immigration policy and practice from National Commissions, the Congress and the White House, as well as private citizens determined to create a country that could meet their expectations. We will examine laws, policies, strategies, and orders issued in the last 35 years to ensure compliance with Executive branch visions of safe, fair, and effective Immigration programs for the 21st Century. In this course, we’ll explore the early, uncertain days of the 13 original colonies as they made their way, haltingly, toward the establishment of the United States. We’ll explore the debates, missteps, and compromises that characterized the late 18th century.

Dick Sullivan holds degrees from the College of the Holy Cross: AB psychology; Boston College: Masters in Education; and Northeastern University: Master’s in Public Administration. He taught for 13 years at the Boston University School of Business. Department: Organizational Behavior and has led numerous LLARC Study Groups.

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Jack Miller

Thursdays, 1 to 2:30 p.m., In Person
Five weeks, begins October 22

20th Century betrayal of Arab aspirations for national self-determination began by European powers following World War I. The Sykes-Picot Agreement between Britain and France divided much of the Middle East into colonial mandates after World War I, while London’s Balfour Declaration promised the Jewish people a “national home” in Mandate Palestine. France and Britain managed their mandates through constitutional monarchies reliant on their European patrons for survival. This democratic charade resulted in mass disillusionment with the concept of liberal constitutionalism, which became “synonymous with colonization and Westernization.” The neo-colonial governments in Egypt, Syria and Iraq were further discredited by their defeat in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war and proved incapable of withstanding the tide of Arab nationalism that swept the region.

The ascendance of pan-Arabism as a “national myth” set the stage for a political and ideological struggle over regional identity. The choice between accepting national identities at least partially defined by colonial borders or embracing the transnational ideology of pan-Arabism became the defining debate of the mid-20th century.

Jack has been the Study Group Leader for various history and other Study Groups including focusing on historical events of the 20th Century including “Making of the Modern Middle East” and "Breakup of Colonial Empires After World War II.”

He is a retired Engineer having worked in the Aerospace, Computer and Commercial industries. After retirement he was an Adjunct Professor at Boston area colleges.

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Bill Koehler

Fridays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., via Zoom
Five weeks, begins September 18 (no class on October 9)

In March 1917, in the throes of impending defeat in the First World War, the Russian people overthrew Tsar Nicholas II and ushered in its first democratic form of government. In November, the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, carried out a second, socialist revolution and eventually established the USSR. We will examine what happened in that tumultuous year and why these seismic changes still matter today.

William Koehler, Dean of the Sloane School of Business and Communication at Regis College, holds a PhD in Modern European History from Brandeis University and has taught in higher education for over three decades.

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Bill Koehler

Fridays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., via Zoom
Five weeks, begins October 30

War solves nothing, but it can certainly change the course of human events. We’ll examine five seminal military engagements in history—Cannae (Rome vs. Carthage), Poltava (Sweden vs. Russia), Waterloo (France vs. the 7th Coalition), Gettysburg (US vs. the Confederacy), and Stalingrad (Germany vs. the USSR)—and their longer-term impacts.

William Koehler, Dean of the Sloane School of Business and Communication at Regis College, holds a PhD in Modern European History from Brandeis University and has taught in higher education for over three decades.

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Carol Tsang

Fridays, 1 to 2:30 p.m., via Zoom
Five weeks, begins October 16

Through a facilitated discussion, classmates express their ideas about recent happenings, while we listen, learn, and understand the basis for others’ opinions. The group discussion is facilitated with guidelines and suggested readings to enable people to feel comfortable participating. Robust exchanges can—and should!—happen within this framework.

Until recently, Carol Tsang lived in Washington, D.C., where everyone is a pundit and many people have experience working for the government. She has a PhD in History and East Asian Languages from Harvard University, specializing in Japanese History, and taught at the University of Illinois at Chicago for several years.

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